Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu departed Washington DC Wednesday morning, flying back to Israel following the signing of the peace treaty with the United Arab Emirates and a ‘declaration of peace’ with Bahrain, both part of the Abraham Accords.
Just before his departure, Netanyahu said the new peace deals would benefit Israelis “very soon”.
“We are now completing a historic visit to Washington, during which we signed the documents for two peace agreements with two Arab states. Israeli citizens will very soon see fruits of these agreements, and they will endure for generations. Everyone who was there understood that we made a historic change which benefits Israel and on behalf of peace.”
The Prime Minister laid out the challenges facing the country as he returns, including an increase in attacks from the Gaza Strip and the ongoing coronavirus crisis.
“I’m going back to Israel now with three missions: to fight the coronavirus, to fight terrorism, and to continue to spread peace.”
Turning to the wave of rocket attacks overnight, Netanyahu said he “wasn’t surprised that the Palestinian terrorists fired at Israel during the historic peace ceremony. They want to set peace back, but they won’t succeed.”
“We will hit everyone who raises their hand to harm us. We will stretch out our hand in peace to those whose hand is reached out in peace to us.”